Over the last month football clubs across south Wales have campaigned for better LGBTQ+ inclusion in sport.
Cardiff City, Swansea City and Newport County took to social media to show their backing for the Rainbow Laces campaign - aimed at ridding football of its long association with bigotry.
I would like to say I was shocked by the angry responses from so-called fans to these posts. The truth is I was expecting a lot worse. In the main fans were supportive of the steps their clubs were taking to show they were representative of their communities.
Read more: Covid has 'ripped through' Cardiff City as Steve Morison reveals his disbelief
I thought I'd wade through the murky waters of Facebook to speak with a group of people who took offence to their clubs welcoming LGBTQ+ people.
Most saw the questions I put to them but decided I was not worthy of a response. One of these people was Lee, who appears to be a Newport County supporter but decided his time was best spent scouring Swansea and Cardiff pages too for LGBTQ+ supportive posts he could try his utmost to disparage.
Lee's comments were hardly original. They included: "Just don't bend over to do your laces up", "Won't be going to the toilet tomorrow", and plenty more.
Cardiff City fan Ben responded to his own club's LGBTQ+-supportive posts with "Shove em where the sun don't shine", and "Support the benders? Never".
Lee and Ben were among the worst of the commenters on the pages across the three weeks, but there were many others.
Across Swansea City's page over the last three weeks there were 14 homophobic comments, 30 angry reactions relating to posts about LGBTQ+ inclusion in sport, and 42 laughing reactions - provided I've covered all of them.
This is unlikely to be a true reflection, however, because the Swans posted a lot more on the issue than the Bluebirds or the Exiles.
Newport County posted more than Cardiff City on the issue and received seven homophobic comments. Ironically a post laden with homophobic remarks actually followed another status from the Exiles warning their supporters over their conduct.
The statement reads: "As a community club Newport County AFC will not tolerate attitudes or behaviours that amount to discrimination through prejudice, ignorance, thoughtlessness or stereotyping."
While Lee and Ben decided it was best they didn't answer my questions, a very small pool of those I contacted were courteous enough to provide a response, and they followed a similar line to many comments left on the posts.
Andrew wrote: "Woke as hell." While another commenter Trey wrote: "Preaching about LGBT in football don't mix [sic]."
I messaged every fan who left an angry reaction, laughing reaction, or homophobic comment on the posts, and three responded. They are key in learning about the different facets of challenges facing LGBTQ+ people in sport.
The first was Ryan - who I sincerely hope is in the vast minority. I asked him why he reacted angrily to some posts. He responded: "I don't support it. I am against it - same with BLM (Black Lives Matter)."
He didn't seem to have the acumen to elaborate. "They are just ducking weird," he continued. "I don't like gays. They're just odd. It was Adam and Eve, not Adam and Steve."
Others including Mark who angrily reacted to a Cardiff City post and Eric who laughed at a Swansea City post said they reacted in such a way because they do not want politics to be involved in their Saturday afternoon at the football.
Mark said: "I would like to make it clear that I have nothing against people who are gay. I do believe this is political. Are they going to have a blue laces or pink laces month for straight people?"
In short, no - of course they're not. Because abuse towards heterosexual people in sport due to their sexuality is not and has never been an issue. This argument is peddled time and again for those against inclusivity in sport and it's tiresome and bears no weight.
Mark came to the conclusion gay people he says he knows "do not feel represented by LGBTQ+". He added: "But whether you are gay or straight or whatever it's what's inside that person [that matters]."
When I have this conversation with others, usually sparked by a homophobic remark, it is astonishing how often they finish with this line: "It's what is inside that matters." Almost as a throwaway comment to satisfy themselves that they're helping rather than hindering inclusion. As though you can go to a football match and abuse a player by calling them a "f**got", or leave a homophobic or transphobic remark on social media, or angrily react to a post calling for more to be done in the sport, but it's okay because all that matters is "what is inside". As though LGBTQ+ are somehow lesser on the outside. Ironically it's probably those I contacted for this piece who could do with some soul searching.
Eric told me: "My own personal view on it is that any non-football related campaign should not be permitted on actual match days. I have absolutely no problem at all with any LGBTQ+ person. I do believe they are all very welcome and should be included in the game."
I genuinely believe Eric was telling me what he believes to be the truth when making those comments. He genuinely thought he was a supportive ally. But the fact is that he was one of many to leave a laughing or angry reaction to a post supporting LGBTQ+ people - and for that he is part of a wider societal issue.
I asked him if he appreciated how a young LGBTQ+ football fan might feel if they were to see those reactions. Let us not forget how utterly vulnerable many of these people could be at the time, whether they're on a journey of coming out gay or transitioning, for example.
"Yes I do absolutely appreciate it," Eric responded. "But I don't think we can please everyone. If we did a campaign for everyone then matchday would be something silly like two hours of campaigning."
The latter part of that statement confirms to me that actually Eric doesn't appreciate it, even though he might think he does.
Stonewall's research says 40% of LGBTQ+ people say sport is not a welcoming environment for them. It's important to note that the question didn't ask about football specifically.
In 2021, according to Stonewall, more than 80% of LGBTQ+ people who take part in sport say they have witnessed homophobia, biphobia, and transphobia in the past 12 months.
In 2019 17% of non-LGBTQ+ people said they believed homophobic language is justified if it is meant as banter.
These figures are hugely telling and remind us all involved in sport that there is a long way to go. I have had a season ticket at a football club for 10 years and I have never seen a same-sex couple holding hands, or showing any affection whatsoever around or inside the ground. Is that right? Should football grounds not be places which accurately represent the community in which they are based? I have asked countless LGBTQ+ people whether they would do hold hands with their partners near or inside the ground on match day, and all said they wouldn't.
Almost every other week I hear a homophobic term levelled at a player or an official on the pitch.
In the last week Everton condemned a homophobic chant aimed at a Chelsea player when the teams played on December 15.
Whether as a football fan you approve of such campaigns or not, these facts prove that by simply attending a match fans are walking into a politically-charged atmosphere, where their opinions are forced on others and vice versa. But football fans are representative of our communities, and there will be people on your row or sitting in front of you at the stadium who will have taken offence to a remark left on social media or a name shouted at the linesman.
This past weekend we've seen countless managers asked to give their thoughts on Covid passes, while fans are informed over tannoys what they need to do before entering the ground.
We also saw former Manchester City captain Vincent Kompany moved to tears following alleged racist abuse.
Football is about what happens on the pitch, but so much of it is about what happens off it too. They are pillars of our communities akin to community clubs and the local gym. You couldn't go into those buildings telling people what you thought of their sexuality or skin colour without being asked to leave, so why at a football ground or on your club's social pages?
As we've seen in Swansea in particular, the rise of a football club can transform cities, bring together families, and give us so much joy. They are obvious vehicles for change within society, and they have a huge part to play.
Brighton and Hove Albion manager Graham Potter sums this up well: "It's important not to underestimate the impact of seeing a football player wearing a pair of rainbow laces in their boots can have on someone. Or the difference that watching a match on TV and seeing a rainbow flag flying at a Premier League stadium can have on a person who may be feeling ostracised from the game they love, or oppressed by the society around them."
For the latest Cardiff City news and analysis delivered straight to your inbox, you can sign up for our newsletter here.